At about the same time I recorded this, Netanyahu got onto his flight home from Washington. He said, in effect, that President Trump was going to go back to the Iranians with all three Israeli demands: no Iranian nukes, no Iranian ballistic missile production and no Iranian proxies (Hizballah and the Houthis in particular) in the Middle East. President Trump posted to Truth Social that he’s going to get whatever deal with the Iranians that he’s going to get. Because the Iranians have been very clear that they’re only negotiating a freeze on their nuclear programme, Bibi is going to have a bit task to spin this visit as anything other than a disaster. As President Trump sits down with the bright lights of the Board of Peace to fundraise for reconstructing a Hamas-controlled Gaza, this is going to be difficult. Difficult why? Difficult because Netanyahu has to call an election before October, and he’s no longer going to be viewed as the victor over the Iranians (the way he was last Summer), or the victor over Hamas (the way he was last Autumn). As the major defeat of 7 October 2023 gets hung round his neck, he’s going to have a hard time getting enough votes for his own party, never mind forming a coalition.

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